We know what you're thinking, because we've been pondering the same thing: What the heck is going on with health care in this country? Soaring costs, maddening bureaucracies, poor medical outcomes, frivolous lawsuits—they're all part of the hot-button issue du jour. It's, tragically, like a real-life farce performed by players sent straight from central casting: angry Joe Sixpacks shouting down their elected representatives at town hall meetings; thoughtful, dignified—and endlessly frustrated—doctors pleading their respective cases; Beltway lobbyists plying their slippery trade; and, of course, cable news talking heads filling the airwaves with so many technical terms and so much misinformation—whew! It's enough to make your head ache (which could, conceivably, require a checkup from a good doctor—provided you have health insurance...and can get an appointment).

And so we took it upon ourselves to wade through this medical mess in order to give you an admittedly incomplete yet practical, realistic, and useful primer on What It All Means. To do so, we turned to some of the experts at the center of this hullabaloo: our 2009 Top Doctors. We selected nine of this year's 283 docs (the most we've ever had!) to help us sort through the topics and terminology so that you—whether you're a concerned mother, a caring husband, or simply a responsible citizen—can understand the issues in this complex and game-changing debate just a little bit better.